— A victorious homecoming proved to be bittersweet for Philadelphia Eagles linebacker DeMeco Ryans, who has a torn Achilles tendon, according to multiple reports that were confirmed by his agent Ben Dogra.

This means his season is over and that his equally devastated teammates will have to carry on without their spiritual and technical leader on the field with them the rest of the way.

Fellow linebacker Connor Barwin's touching words in the locker room provided the most fitting tribute following the Eagles' 31-21 triumph.

"He's just an incredible leader," Barwin said. "I mean, you talk about someone who does not change the way he acts ever. I mean, he is the same exact person every single day. I think the guys have a lot of respect for that, and that's what you need out of a leader.

"… He's smart, he knows the defense like the back of his hand, he gets us in the right calls, he owns everything he does, he never loses it, he never breaks down. If he misses the play, he lets it go. If somebody else misses a play, he helps him move forward. I mean he's just a ... great guy, man, an incredible guy."

That void, Barwin went on to say, cannot be filled by one player.

"Any time somebody like that goes down, you have to kind of fill it by committee," he said. "I don't think Casey [Matthews] can come in there and fill that thing [by himself]. Me and [LB] Trent [Cole] have to step up. I think [DE] Cedric [Thornton] and [Malcom Jenkins], everybody kind of needs to elevate a little bit to try to pick that up."

According to Barwin, Ryans' injury, which happened as he was attempting to return an interception deep in Texans territory, came on almost the same spot on the field where he tore his other Achilles tendon in 2010.

Big payday approaching for Maclin

The further we get into the season, the further the decimal point on wide receiver Jeremy Maclin's new contract at the end of the season keeps moving to the right.

Maclin, who missed all of last season with a torn ACL before accepting a one-year deal to come back and play for the Eagles this year, had another monster day against the Texans. He caught six passes for 158 yards and two touchdowns, running his season totals to 45 receptions, 790 yards and eight TDs at the midpoint.

That, of course, projects to 90, 1,580 and 16 for the season, which would all be team records.

"When I went down last year, the one thing I told myself was to come back and give myself a chance to be better than what I was," Maclin said. "This year I have had my number called quite a bit, and all I can do is be reliable for my team.

"I'm not going to necessarily call [the decision to take a one-year contract] gambling. I just did what was best for my situation, me and my family. That was what was right with the ability to make something happen during the season. When the time comes, it will take care of itself."

It's a numbers game

RB LeSean McCoy rushed for 117 yards on 23 carries to move past Brian Westbrook and into second place on the team's all-time rushing yards list. His 6,095 career rushing yards puts him well within range of breaking the team record of 6,538 held by Wilbert Montgomery. … LB Connor Barwin picked up his seventh sack in the last five games and LB Brandon Graham came through with his third sack in the last five games. … When LB DeMeco Ryans provided his interception, it extended the Eagles' streak to 21 consecutive contests with at least one takeaway — their longest since 1995.

Quote of the day

"Actually I didn't even know [QB Nick] Foles was out. [I saw] the bomb to [Jeremy] Maclin and I turned around to congratulate him and it was Sanchez. I didn't even know the guy was out." — Eagles tackle Jason Peters, on backup QB Mark Sanchez's first play from scrimmage after starter Nick Foles was knocked out of the game with a shoulder injury.

Inactives

Before the game, the decision was made to deactivate safety Nate Allen, who had started every game Chip Kelly had coached for the Eagles. Allen's injured hamstring just didn't respond when he tested it around two hours before kickoff.

His absence cleared the way for second-year player Earl Wolff to start in his place.

But the Eagles did get center Jason Kelce (hernia) and running back Darren Sproles (knee) back from injuries. Kelce started after being out since getting injured in Week 2

Wolff showed great promise as a rookie last season, starting six games before a knee injury derailed it. He was inactive for five of their final six regular-season games and then didn't play despite being activated for their playoff loss to New Orleans last January.